Detroit auto show promises 30 new vehicles, cars driving inside Cobo

The 2018 North American International Auto Show at Cobo Center in Detroit embodies the variety of vehicles on sale. Not every new idea will find an eager audience, though. Here are Mark Phelan's picks for the show’s highs and lows.
Mandi Wright, Detroit Free Press

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The Infiniti Q80 Inspiration concept draws a crowd during the first public day of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit on Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018.(Photo: Kimberly P. Mitchell, Detroit Free Press)Buy Photo

At least 30 new cars and trucks will debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit next month, and for the first time vehicles will drive on Cobo Center’s main floor to demonstrate new features and designs.

The show is open to the public Jan. 19-27. Festivities kick off with press conferences to announce new vehicles Jan. 14-15, industry days Jan. 16-17 and the annual charity preview Jan. 18.

Expect lots of events celebrating the 30th anniversary of the old Detroit auto show gaining worldwide prominence as the North American International Auto Show. Lexus and Infiniti are likely to wave that banner, as the brands’ global debut at that first NAIAS helped put them and the show on the map.

The vehicles driving on the main floor will take advantage of space opened up when German luxury brands Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz decided not to bring new vehicles and executives to the show. Those brands’ local dealers may have a presence in Cobo when the show opens to the public.

Start-up businesses and technologies will be showcased during press and industry days, show chairman Bill Golling said.

“Manufacturers want to show off their new technologies,” DADA executive director Rod Alberts said. “The only way to do that is in vehicles.”

A food truck park was also featured in a video promoting the reinvented show. Ticket holders will be able to move from indoor to outside activities with RFID wristbands or similar gear.

The Detroit Auto Dealers Association, which runs the show, expects to keep the coveted “international” status reserved for leading auto shows.

They hope that, combined with the potential to put customers in new vehicles on closed courses or public roads, will help convince automakers to bring high-profile new vehicle unveilings to the show’s new June dates. The chance for a first look at popular new vehicles draws visitors from across the country, boosting the auto show’s economic impact.

Concerts, vehicle unveilings and displays could be held at Hart Plaza on the riverfront in the Detroit auto show's expanded footprint.(Photo: Detroit Auto Dealers Association)

“People are going to see a whole new Detroit and a whole new auto industry,” Alberts said.

The 2020 show will be open to the public June 13-20. Press conferences to unveil new vehicles will take place June 9-10, with Industry days June 10-11 and the charity preview June 12. The auto dealers announced Friday that the show will remain based at Cobo Center through 2026.

Sandwiched between the Detroit Grand Prix Indy race on Belle Isle and the Freedom Festival fireworks June 22, the show will become the centerpiece of a festival showcasing the auto industry and downtown Detroit, DADA hopes.